I may not really be Rodrigo Hurtado, but that’s the name
printed in gold on my scriptures.
These are the scriptures I read every day.
These are the scriptures I take to church.
So, who is the real Rodrigo Hurtado?
A long lost love? Of
course not. You would have heard of him
by now.
A distant cousin?
Blonde hair, green eyes, fair skinned girl and from what I know, I do
not have a trace of Mexico
running through my blood.
Best friend? I’m sure
he’s a nice enough person, but I’ve never meet him in my life.
So why do I have his scriptures?
I purchased a beautiful set of scriptures, the Bible
along with the Book of Mormon before I left on my mission in 1995. My name was printed in gold on the
cover. My scriptures were my
constant. I read, studied, highlighted
and carried them with me everywhere. They were in my lap the morning Prophet Gordon
B. Hinckley spoke to us sister missionaries in the Salt Lake City
Tabernacle. I had them when I met Margaret
Thatcher as she walked through the visitor center and shook the hands of us
missionaries. I had my scriptures when
Mike Wallace of 60 minutes walked through
My scriptures were also there when I escorted the ambassador
of Iceland
and his wife on a tour of the Temple
Square grounds.
After my 1 ½ service, a time I will forever cherish, I
packed my bags, scriptures included and flew back home to Mesa where my scriptures stayed with me until
a few months into my marriage. I left
them at church, on a chair and when I returned just a few minutes later to get
them, they were gone. I was concerned, but certain they would be found. For months, I searched the lost and found. I wondered who would want an old pair of
mission scriptures, but they never turned up.
To this day, I still ache for my scriptures from my mission. The photos tucked in between the pages,
notes, letters and poems from family and friends, impressions I’d written in
the pages while I learned about Jesus, dreams, concerns and hopes I shared
while pondering God’s plan for me.
It was all gone.
The counselor purchased a new set of leather scriptures for
Christmas that year, engraved with my now married name on the front cover. I cherished those scriptures and used them
for almost 10 years, but still I ached for my mission scriptures. No longer did I have the time to read like I
did before and the everyday miracles that came from scripture reading were
tucked in the back of my mind. I had
high intentions to read everyday, but most days it didn’t happen. I packaged them in a box in 2008, the day we
moved two houses down the street to our new home. Reef was 3 months old and it took weeks, even
months to unpack all those boxes. I didn’t
know the garage leaked, so the day we had a huge monsoonal rain, I didn’t think
anything of it. It was too late when I
noticed a mildew smell. I inspected the unpacked
boxes and found them full of photos and books, including my soaking wet green
and black moldy scriptures.
Two sets down, and now my third set from Rodrigo Hurtado,
found at Desert Industries, a thrift store owned by the Mormon Church. When I purchased them for $4.00, I was
thrilled. Not only were they in
excellent condition, but they didn’t have a single marking in them. I
wanted a new set as soon as possible, but didn’t have the money for a new $60
set.
I carry my Rodrigo Hurtado scriptures with pride, just don’t
call me Rodrigo. Sure, I still hope my
mission scriptures will turn up, but until they do, these work just fine.
Good for you. I try to read my Bible daily, but sometimes I don't. The Bible I am currently reading has an orange cover. My very best friend gave it to me.
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I enjoyed this--especially the video with President Hinckley--he was so funny. If I run into Rodrigo I will send him your way--love you. Mom
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